STAND. COM. REP. NO. 886

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 964

       S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2017

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 964, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HOMELESS SHELTERS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to provide the Department of Human Services with more flexibility in sheltering the homeless.

     Specifically, the measure amends Act 234, Session Laws of Hawaii 2016, to provide the Department of Human Services with the discretion to determine partition space requirements for emergency homeless shelters with which the Department contracts for shelter services for homeless persons.

     Your Committee received written comments in support of this measure from the Department of Human Services and the Governor's Coordinator on Homelessness.

     Your Committee finds that the Legislature enacted Act 234, Session Laws of Hawaii 2016, to make the homeless shelter system more cost effective and more appealing to homeless families and individuals to enter shelters.  Your Committee believes that homeless families and individuals cannot be forced into shelters, but must be provided with enough security, privacy, and sanitation facilities to encourage voluntary access.  Your Committee also notes that Act 234 requires homeless shelter providers to comply with other standards, such as performance metrics.  The administration apparently feels that homeless shelter providers need more time to transition into the new standards.  Accordingly, your Committee finds that providing the Department with flexibility in determining which shelters will have partitioned spaces and more time to comply with Act 234 will allow the Department to more effectively address the problem of homelessness in the State.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 964, S.D. 1, and recommends that it pass Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

________________________________

JILL N. TOKUDA, Chair